Mono Basin History Museum

Old Schoolhouse And Upside Down House

Located in the old Mono Lake schoolhouse at the south end of Hess Community Park in Lee Vining, the Mono Basin History Museum showcases artifacts, furniture, maps, equipment, and photographs chronicling the cultural history of the Mono Basin. Inside the museum, displays tell the history of the local Kootzaduka’a Paiutes, regional gold mining, Mono Basin homesteads and ranches, schools, resorts, and the town of Lee Vining. Outdoor exhibits feature Nellie Bly O'Bryan's world-famous Upside-Down House, and farming and mining equipment.

The Mono Basin Historical Society (MBHS) is a non-profit citizens’ group dedicated to the preservation, protection, and interpretation of the Kootzaduka’a Paiute, pioneer, and mining heritage of the Mono Basin. 

Officers: President, <open>; Vice-President, Cole Hawkins; Secretary Cathy Foye; Treasurer, Lenore Twomey; Historian, Bob Marks

Board of Trustees: Rich Foye (Chairman), David Carle, Bob Marks, Robin Cassidy, Janice Mendez, Paul McFarland, and Chris Spiller.

Upcoming Events

May 6, 2024: CPS Camp #37:  Conscientious Objectors in the Eastern Sierra Homefront during World War II
Presented by Richard Potashin
In-person with a pot-luck dinner

1st Monday of the month -
Local history presentations
May through October
In-person member meetings
Other months -Zoom only

In-person meetings are held at the
Lee Vining Community Center
296 Mattly Ave

Want to know more about the Upside-Down House?
Visit our Outdoor Exhibits page!

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Land Acknowledgement

The Mono Basin Historical Society acknowledges that our buildings and outdoor exhibition space are gathering places on the unceded ancestral land of the Kootzaduka’a people, the traditional caretakers of their homeland, Kootzagwae.

 The Mono Basin Historical Society Board of Trustees adopted this statement at its May 23, 2023 meeting.  The English-language spelling of the name of the people has varied over time (e.g. Kutzadikaa, Kuzedika), but Kootzaduka’a is the current usage of the tribe. The name of the people’s homeland, Kootzagwae, means the Mono Basin.